Jewel is one of the most important characters in the development of the main plot of the story, second only to Darl. And yet while Darl narrates a large amount of the novel, Jewel has one two-page chapter at the very beginning of the book. Why do we not get into Jewel's head more? What is it about Jewel that Faulkner wants to keep shrouded in mystery? And since he has only one chapter, the significance of it should be very important. And yet the principle focus of the passage is on Jewel's grudge against Cash. Why is that the most important thing for us to know about Jewel? And what do we make of this line: "if there is a God what the hell is He for?" Essentially this a forum to discuss all things Jewel.
To curb this argument before it starts, the fact that he is not a Bundren is not why he doesn't get many speaking lines. After all, Cora and Vernon Tull both speak many times, and other, less important characters get parts as well. I am sure that the meaning goes beyond that, but how? - TRu-c Feb 27, 2008
I just realized that about Jewel, the fact that he has only one chapter. I think that if we've made any assumtion about Jewel, it cannot be legitimate because of the little amount of writing Faulkner gives us to deal with. We don't really have enought time inside his head to get a full outline of what Jewel is really like unless that information from other characters' chapters. We can't really know Jewel inside, what he's feeling, and how he's taking in the entire journey. He seems like such quiet boy because of the minimal amount of speaking lines and chapters. What if Faulkner had not put any "Jewel" chapter in? We'd have to rely on everyone else's opinions and viewpoints to take in the real Jewel. We wouldn't even have the small number of thoughts from his head in that small chapter. What do you think?- bzw-c Feb 27, 2008
I think that is a very good question Tim and I do not think that I know the answer to it. I think it would make more sense if Jewel narrated the majority of the story while Darl only had a small part. Jewel is obviously Addie's favorite and since this story is assumed to be told from the point of view of Addie Bundren, I would think she would want Jewel to tell the story. However, maybe Darl was always the smarter one and was always able to think more clearly so Addie would have wanted him to tell the story so it would be told the best way. The only other think I can think of is that Faulkner wants Jewel to seem mysterious to us just as it was mysterious as to why he was so tall. Maybe this is part of the story that Faulkner is expecting us to figure out on our own. He needs to put some troubling parts in the story otherwise we will get bored right? He needs to challenge us by only describing Jewel in the sections that other characters speak rather than letting Jewel discribe himself. I like that Faulkner challenges us in this way; I only wish that I could find the answer to this question of Jewel's absence.- mha-c Feb 27, 2008 I think that Faulkner didn’t give Jewel his own chapters because he wanted Jewel to remain a mystery and he’s pretty independent. One can see Jewel’s independence when he did all of that extra work clearing away someone else’s fields to get enough money to buy the horse and then he was fiercely protective of the horse. With someone who is so independent it is only natural that they don’t let other people into their heads. Faulkner might be reflecting this independent nature by not letting the reader into Jewel’s head to see his thoughts and perceptions. Maybe Faulkner wanted to keep Jewel a little bit of a mystery because of his parentage. His conception was clouded in mystery and it kinda fits having Jewel as a mystery to the reader too. I think that Jewel’s fierce independence is one of the main reasons we don’t get a good look inside his head - kli-c Feb 27, 2008
I think the fact that Jewel narrates very little of the story reflects his character. Through out the book he communicates very little with the other characters. He often goes off on his own. I think that this is just part of his nature. If this is just who he is it only seems natural that he wouldn't tell much of the story himself. I think that the author creates Jewel's character to be very mysterious and to be not understood by the other characters. This is reflected in the fact that we, the readers, also don't know or understand very much about Jewel. I do believe that all of this was intentionally done by the author. We find out more about Jewel through his actions in the book. He is defined by his heroic acts even though they seem opposite of his apparent personality. Which is the true Jewel, the distant one or the heroic one?- bga-c Feb 27, 2008
As cliche as this may sounds I l believe one of the reasons that he has only one chapter is that it is a reflection of his name. A jewel is something uncommon and rare, something one does not always come across. And Jewel is rare is his own right because he reformed his ways to a degree and made sacrifices to show that he did care about his family. He gave up his prized Snopes horse, and he almost died twice in a fire and flood, saving his mother's body from destruction. While before his mother's death, he was described as a cold son who did not show any love for his mother or his family. And I also think that his lack of a major speaking role is a commentary on the nature of good people. People who do acts out of sheer kindness without any ulterior motive tend not to look for attention or the spotlight; they remain quiet and keep doing what they do. It's easy to see all the negatives, but there is still some good; you just have to look for it.- MSu-c Feb 27, 2008
I must say that I somewhat agree with MSu; I think that part of the reason for his lack of speaking parts lies in his name. Jewel. Jewel's are magnificent valuables that are genearlly worth a lot of money but more importantly they need little describing. If someone were to compare a plain band ring and a diamond ring, the diamond ring would be looked upon with much more value and splendor. And when was the last time you heard of a jewel that was messed up? or crooked? or ugly? or bad? Now, I am not saying that Jewel is an angel, he is still a human, but I think it does relate to his character. His heroic actions, his valiant efforts, his intentions all speak louder than words.
Faulkner obviously did not give Jewel many speaking parts for a reason, but I think that his reason was for us to have to figure out Jewel for ourselves. It leaves a lot up to question about Jewel. Even more, he acts as a type of juxtaposition to Darl, who speaks a lot but has very conflicting emotions and actions. I like that Jewel did not get as much time to speak because it gave me more of an opportunity to judge Jewel for myself. - ptr-c Feb 27, 2008
I just wanted to add that, yes, ptr, there are imperfect jewels. They have systems for grading the qualities of diamonds and such, so there are possiblities for the jewels to have flaws. I think the secret of Jewel's personality lies in his name, but not exactly in the same way. When jewel comes out of the earth, it is not exactly pretty. It takes a lot of treatments and polishing to get the gems all nice and pretty. I think that is kind of what happened in the book: Jewel was not perfect and loving at the beginning, but, over time, he has been polished into a loving person. I think that because of this process, we do not hear from him because he does not know exactly what he is thinking, so Faulkner leaves it up to the other characters to give us outside opinions of what he is going through. - kkr-c Feb 27, 2008
Ok, this may be totally out-there, but I think that it has to do with the fact that Jewel is Addie's favorite. This story is about Addie's revenge on her family for her misery, right? Well, she loved Jewel, and has no reason to take revenge on him. Addie is telling this story through the tortured minds of her family.. maybe Jewel wasn't quite as tortured as the rest. Also, we hear negative opinions of him from the family members, but also "see" his heroic acts. It is left up to us to interpret, and Faulkner probably knew that we would all be on Jewel's side of it. The Bundran family is so messed up, and Faulkner wanted us to see that. The unfair judgement of Jewel by the rest of his family increases that perspective of the Bundrans. - mmi-c Feb 27, 2008
To curb this argument before it starts, the fact that he is not a Bundren is not why he doesn't get many speaking lines. After all, Cora and Vernon Tull both speak many times, and other, less important characters get parts as well. I am sure that the meaning goes beyond that, but how? -
I just realized that about Jewel, the fact that he has only one chapter. I think that if we've made any assumtion about Jewel, it cannot be legitimate because of the little amount of writing Faulkner gives us to deal with. We don't really have enought time inside his head to get a full outline of what Jewel is really like unless that information from other characters' chapters. We can't really know Jewel inside, what he's feeling, and how he's taking in the entire journey. He seems like such quiet boy because of the minimal amount of speaking lines and chapters. What if Faulkner had not put any "Jewel" chapter in? We'd have to rely on everyone else's opinions and viewpoints to take in the real Jewel. We wouldn't even have the small number of thoughts from his head in that small chapter. What do you think?-
I think that is a very good question Tim and I do not think that I know the answer to it. I think it would make more sense if Jewel narrated the majority of the story while Darl only had a small part. Jewel is obviously Addie's favorite and since this story is assumed to be told from the point of view of Addie Bundren, I would think she would want Jewel to tell the story. However, maybe Darl was always the smarter one and was always able to think more clearly so Addie would have wanted him to tell the story so it would be told the best way. The only other think I can think of is that Faulkner wants Jewel to seem mysterious to us just as it was mysterious as to why he was so tall. Maybe this is part of the story that Faulkner is expecting us to figure out on our own. He needs to put some troubling parts in the story otherwise we will get bored right? He needs to challenge us by only describing Jewel in the sections that other characters speak rather than letting Jewel discribe himself. I like that Faulkner challenges us in this way; I only wish that I could find the answer to this question of Jewel's absence.-
I think that Faulkner didn’t give Jewel his own chapters because he wanted Jewel to remain a mystery and he’s pretty independent. One can see Jewel’s independence when he did all of that extra work clearing away someone else’s fields to get enough money to buy the horse and then he was fiercely protective of the horse. With someone who is so independent it is only natural that they don’t let other people into their heads. Faulkner might be reflecting this independent nature by not letting the reader into Jewel’s head to see his thoughts and perceptions. Maybe Faulkner wanted to keep Jewel a little bit of a mystery because of his parentage. His conception was clouded in mystery and it kinda fits having Jewel as a mystery to the reader too. I think that Jewel’s fierce independence is one of the main reasons we don’t get a good look inside his head
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I think the fact that Jewel narrates very little of the story reflects his character. Through out the book he communicates very little with the other characters. He often goes off on his own. I think that this is just part of his nature. If this is just who he is it only seems natural that he wouldn't tell much of the story himself. I think that the author creates Jewel's character to be very mysterious and to be not understood by the other characters. This is reflected in the fact that we, the readers, also don't know or understand very much about Jewel. I do believe that all of this was intentionally done by the author. We find out more about Jewel through his actions in the book. He is defined by his heroic acts even though they seem opposite of his apparent personality. Which is the true Jewel, the distant one or the heroic one?-
As cliche as this may sounds I l believe one of the reasons that he has only one chapter is that it is a reflection of his name. A jewel is something uncommon and rare, something one does not always come across. And Jewel is rare is his own right because he reformed his ways to a degree and made sacrifices to show that he did care about his family. He gave up his prized Snopes horse, and he almost died twice in a fire and flood, saving his mother's body from destruction. While before his mother's death, he was described as a cold son who did not show any love for his mother or his family. And I also think that his lack of a major speaking role is a commentary on the nature of good people. People who do acts out of sheer kindness without any ulterior motive tend not to look for attention or the spotlight; they remain quiet and keep doing what they do. It's easy to see all the negatives, but there is still some good; you just have to look for it.-
I must say that I somewhat agree with MSu; I think that part of the reason for his lack of speaking parts lies in his name. Jewel. Jewel's are magnificent valuables that are genearlly worth a lot of money but more importantly they need little describing. If someone were to compare a plain band ring and a diamond ring, the diamond ring would be looked upon with much more value and splendor. And when was the last time you heard of a jewel that was messed up? or crooked? or ugly? or bad? Now, I am not saying that Jewel is an angel, he is still a human, but I think it does relate to his character. His heroic actions, his valiant efforts, his intentions all speak louder than words.
Faulkner obviously did not give Jewel many speaking parts for a reason, but I think that his reason was for us to have to figure out Jewel for ourselves. It leaves a lot up to question about Jewel. Even more, he acts as a type of juxtaposition to Darl, who speaks a lot but has very conflicting emotions and actions. I like that Jewel did not get as much time to speak because it gave me more of an opportunity to judge Jewel for myself. -
I just wanted to add that, yes, ptr, there are imperfect jewels. They have systems for grading the qualities of diamonds and such, so there are possiblities for the jewels to have flaws. I think the secret of Jewel's personality lies in his name, but not exactly in the same way. When jewel comes out of the earth, it is not exactly pretty. It takes a lot of treatments and polishing to get the gems all nice and pretty. I think that is kind of what happened in the book: Jewel was not perfect and loving at the beginning, but, over time, he has been polished into a loving person. I think that because of this process, we do not hear from him because he does not know exactly what he is thinking, so Faulkner leaves it up to the other characters to give us outside opinions of what he is going through.
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Ok, this may be totally out-there, but I think that it has to do with the fact that Jewel is Addie's favorite. This story is about Addie's revenge on her family for her misery, right? Well, she loved Jewel, and has no reason to take revenge on him. Addie is telling this story through the tortured minds of her family.. maybe Jewel wasn't quite as tortured as the rest. Also, we hear negative opinions of him from the family members, but also "see" his heroic acts. It is left up to us to interpret, and Faulkner probably knew that we would all be on Jewel's side of it. The Bundran family is so messed up, and Faulkner wanted us to see that. The unfair judgement of Jewel by the rest of his family increases that perspective of the Bundrans. -